Bomb Fast-Casual Middle Eastern Noms

If you’re looking for solid Middle Eastern food in DC, Naf Naf Grill is an absolute must-try. Located on 1875 K Street NW, this fast-casual restaurant is what dreams are made of. They sell freshly handmade food using traditional methods, and when we say “freshly,” we mean FRESH, like there’s someone kneading dough at the counter up front (!!!!) And FYI, the dough’s for their pita bread, which is straight up magical – more on that later though.

We got lunch there at 11:30 yesterday, and it was a freaking awesome call because people started pouring in at around 12. Don’t be afraid of the line though – it moves quickly because ordering’s easy peasy. Here’s how it works! You start by picking a base: pita, basmati rice, romaine lettuce, hummus, or couscous. Then you add your protein: chicken shawarma, steak or falafel. Throw on salads and/or garnishes: chopped salad, purple cabbage salad, sumac onions, or pickles. Then top it all off with sauces of your choice: tahini, garlic sauce, amba, s’khug or harissa.

We got three different combos – pita with chicken shawarma, purple cabbage salad, chopped salad, sumac onions and tahini, a hummus bowl with falafel, all their salads + garnishes, garlic sauce, and harissa, and a romaine lettuce bowl with steak, garlic sauce, harissa, and all of the aforementioned fixins’ – and were super impressed with everything. We also got a side of Naf fries and baklava because…we wanted to, ha.

Everything was phenom, but standouts were the ridiculously yum pita bread, the crisp yet tender falafel, and the naf fries. It was all really flavorful, and their texture game was on POINT! The crunchy, acidic garnishes + the soft, chewy pita + the melt-in-your-mouth protein = heaven on earth. The hummus bowl came with a warm pita, which we lovingly dipped into our medley of delicious goodness. The only complaint was that we ran out. Next time, we’re gonna special order a giant pita so we can live in it like a house…an edible house, ha.

Annnnd a shot of the baklava we got. It was definitely on the sweeter side, but we still enjoyed it immensely – available in two flavors for those of you interested. So, things to remember going forward: get a hundred orders of their pita bread (jk…kind of, ha), pick up some naf fries, go cray with any one of their bowls, and make plans to come back several times a week. You’re welcome in advance, Nomsters.